Get a trickle charger or new battery?

perfect - my battery voltage seems fine and I've had not starting issues so I'm just looking to do some preventative trickle to extend the life of the battery overall and though this cheap charger likely takes much much longer to get the battery to full charge, it seems it will do the trick so I'm gonna try the el cheapo and if it doesn't work for my battery, Amazon makes for easy returns!

 

Yeah the description is deceptive. Makes it seem as though the Jr. is completely incapable.

 

Before using trickle charger your battery needs to be full otherwise it'll take forever.
Most alternators charge at 2k rpm and higher.
Just idling is not enough. Take a drive on the freeway once in awhile.
But again, to 100% fully charge you'll need a charger.

 

They replaced yours because its leaking.
Im sure dealer load tested and tested crank voltage if battery is good or not. They're not going to replace a battery just because you want it.
They'll put it on a charger and let you be on your way.

 

Doesn't sound normal. Maybe ask the dealer, if you replace battery, and that fixes, will they reimburse you then??? I've heard of people having Toyota warranty/reimburse on a battery that was replaced when they were closed.
Do you have any wiring mods, or aftermarket equipment?

 

Second this, this is nothing new for us vette owners as they are hard on batteries, I have a C6 and it goes on a battery tender if it is not going to be driven for longer than a day or so. I firmly believe it really prolongs the life of the battery in cars that are not driven enough.

 

Same exact issue for me...i drive ~6min to train station each day and battery starts to die after all that sitting, especially in winter. Granted I've got a 99 taco but same principles apply. Battery tender Jr on Amazon works great.

Just get extra wire and run it from garage, plug in occasionally and that's it, you're set. I wired up a port to my battery that goes through the grille, been working for years.

 

If you are not using your car/truck on a regular basis a trickle charger is a must. Today’s cars use a lot of juice while parked due to on board electronics. Lead acid batteries don’t do well with deep cycles. I use this charger on my GT3 RS as it’s a weekend car. Your battery life will be extended if using a trickle charger. This charger can be used on any vehicle and it plugs directly into the cigarette lighter.

 

A deep cycle is that, a deep cycle battery. It can withstand hundreds of deep discharges and not damage the battery ( thick plates). A regular battery is fine as long as it's not discharged and allowed to sit for days or weeks. Its dead. When a trickle charger is put on, it'll last as long as an AGM .
I have a Diehard AGM going 7 years of abuse.

 

Both. Then don’t neglect your new battery and use the trickle charger.

Duh.

 

well like I said, I have a regular car battery currently and it sits all winter just fine. Maybe I’m just lucky. I’ve never needed to trickle charge a battery but people have recommended that I pull the boat battery and out it on a trickle charger during the winter.

winter here (Minnesota) is quite cold. That might make a difference. The cold tends to slow chemical reactions.

 

You will get a whole range of answers to this one! Most, like mine, can be refuted... I predict you have a few things going on, 1) you likely have one cell in your battery that while it is “within spec” is only marginally. Most batteries are actually refurbished and have weak spots. 2) your driving habits are contributing to exacerbating any flaws. Essentially the voltage regulator kicks in too late on your quick commute, and you never get enough charge time in the maintenance cycle. 3) you may, and this is one of those buyer beware areas, may glean some value with a desulfurization. 4) a trickle charge can’t hurt. I use cheap plugin power port volt gauges to measure the standing voltages in both my batteries. While not as precise as a good meter, they do indicate relative change in voltage over time conveniently with truck in ACC and blower/lights off.

 

My new battery started leaking acid at 8 months and it was visible so I took it in and got a new one free. First time this had happened to me.

 

indeed, I actually wonder if the concern over alternator power for an AGM may be somewhat overblown. I received the $27 BT Jr. over the weekend and hooked it up to my X2Power (Northstar) in stock size. This battery has been on my truck for going on 3 years with no charging beyond the alternator power.

plugged it in and the light flashed red for a bit which is supposed to indicate <80% power and based on the low power of the jr, doing some quick math it sounded like it would take at least 8 hours. Within 2.5 hrs using the Jr, it transitioned to flashing green (>80%) then solid green to indicate full charge.

it’s good piece of mind but given how quickly it achieved a full charge and the low power I’m not sold on its necessity but it is good piece of mind so I’ll hook it up from time to time but at the very least it convinced me the Jr is plenty sufficient

 

My 1st gen always sat in the driveway in the winter and didn't get driven for a couple weeks at a time with no issues. New cars, not so much. Killed my '18 battery letting it sit undriven last week. MIL's RAV4 is the same way, needs to be run every couple days at least. Seems ridiculous but I suppose that is the price for all the extra electronics we are saddled with now.

I'll look into the trickle chargers...

 

I wanted to get everyone's opinion: What do you think of putting a BT 1.25A trickle charger on my battery without disconnecting it from the truck?

 

You can give it a shot but I found when I had one on my motorhome and the battery was still connected to the vehicle, that the charger would boil the battery dry. I think the problem lay in the draws on the battery and the charge would stay in bulk charge mode. It would never go into float mode. This over time heated the battery up and eventually cooked the battery. Now mine was long term stoarge. If you are doing short periods of storage then you may not have this problem. This is something to consider when storing and charging for longer times.

 

I have a Deka trickle charger that I move around my garage about once a week from the Taco (2016/23k miles, original battery), to the motorcycle (10 yrs/6500 miles old, original battery) to my trail mower battery (old as dirt). I don't unhook the batteries from the vehicles and have never had an issue.

I did top off the Taco battery with distilled water after a very bouncy trip through Maine. I didn't think serviceable batteries were even made anymore.

 

Thanks for the reply. I use it for short term charges and it does go into trickle mode, I always check for that. For long term I always disconnect the battery